Create a budget for the first time
Budgets in WorldShare Acquisitions
Every institution using WorldShare Acquisitions for ordering must create a budget. Budgets allow you to keep track of your library's purchases over a period of time. A budget is a set of funds in the same period. The period is defined by a start date and an end date.
Important notes about budgets
- You cannot delete a budget once it is created. Therefore, it is highly recommended to not create a test budget or test orders.
- If you do create a budget by mistake, you can rename funds within a budget or change the dates of a budget.
- However, orders assigned to this budget will still be encumbered on this budget and only can be disencumbered by invoicing the items.
- Therefore, again, it is recommended not to create test budgets and orders.
- If a budget exists, a new budget's start date cannot precede any existing budget's end date.
- The first budget you create can have any start date, but its end date cannot precede the date you created it.
- The first budget is automatically enabled for use.
- A budget can have one of five statuses.
- Closing budgets. A budget can be closed only after its end date has passed. A closed budget cannot be enabled for use.
- When you have created funds, a summary of the budget appears at the top of the budget you are viewing. The total amount budgeted, the amount encumbered, the amount expended, and the remaining balance are displayed in a list and pie chart.
Create a budget for the first time
This workflow describes the steps to take when setting up a budget for the very first time, in addition to important facts to keep in mind when creating your budget.
Step 1: Decide when you want to start using WorldShare Acquisitions for ordering
The first thing you must do before you begin to create your budget is to decide when you want to starting using WorldShare Acquisitions for ordering. Specifically, do you want to start at the beginning of the next fiscal period, or do you want to start part of the way through the current fiscal period? There is some added complexity when starting a budget in the middle of a fiscal period (noted below), but if you choose to start at the beginning of the next fiscal period, you will likely have to duplicate your effort by receiving items previously ordered in your old acquisitions system while adding newly ordered item records in WMS.
Step 2: Create a budget
Once you have decided when to start using WorldShare Acquisitions for ordering, you can create your budget.
- On the left panel, click Budgets.
- Click New Budget.
Step 3: Enter the start and end date
On the budget you created, enter the start date and end date of the budget period. You can do this by setting the start date and selecting the appropriate time period (typically one year).
If you are creating a budget for the next fiscal period:
- Enter the Start Date and End Date for the fiscal period.
If you are creating a budget for the current fiscal period, you have two options:
- Set the Start Date to today's date and manually adjust the End Date to match the current fiscal period's end date, or
- Set the Start Date to the date the fiscal period actually began (in the past) and set the Period to the appropriate value.
Step 4: Create funds
See Create funds.
Watch a video
Create your first budget (7:36)
This video shows how to create your first budget, including adding and editing funds, in WorldShare Management Services Acquisitions.